


i've made my choice (and my choice is you)

by BloodRaven55



Category: RWBY
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/F, Heavy Angst, One Shot, Spoilers for V7C4, Spoilers: Volume 7 (RWBY), Spoilers: v07e04: Pomp and Circumstance, Volume 7 (RWBY), but i promise it's, don't read if you haven't seen it, so enjoy some pining bees, there's some
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-23
Updated: 2019-11-23
Packaged: 2021-02-26 05:35:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,235
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21538345
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BloodRaven55/pseuds/BloodRaven55
Summary: Blake might have wanted nothing more than to crash in the nearest bed and sleep for a year earlier, but now that she’s actually lying there on the cushy Atlas mattress she can’t for the life of her shut off her brain. The last few days she’s felt happier—freer—than she can remember since she was a child, and she can’t shake the feeling that it’s all so wrong.
Relationships: Blake Belladonna/Yang Xiao Long
Comments: 18
Kudos: 256





	i've made my choice (and my choice is you)

**Author's Note:**

> I have a lot of Feelings™ about the Bees' reactions when Harriet talked about not confusing work with personal attachments, especially Blake's, and this is the very emotional result.
> 
> Lyrics in the title are from My Choice is You by Shonlock.
> 
> So, uh... enjoy!

Blake might have wanted nothing more than to crash in the nearest bed and sleep for a year earlier, but now that she’s actually lying there on the cushy Atlas mattress she can’t for the life of her shut off her brain. The last few days she’s felt happier—freer—than she can remember since she was a child, and she can’t shake the feeling that it’s all so wrong.

_We don’t confuse the two._

Harriet’s words were clearly meant as nothing more than a flippant remark or a piece of offhand advice, but they’ve settled underneath Blake’s skin, heavy and uncomfortable. The Ace Ops were older, far more experienced— of course they knew best when it came to working as a team. And to think she’d actually been considering exploring this _thing_ growing between her and Yang. She should have known better, but freedom’s obviously made her selfish.

No, she can’t risk the balance of the group by pursuing these feelings swelling in her chest. Their mission is too important, and it wouldn’t be fair on the others if they became caught in the fallout. What if something goes wrong between her and Yang? She isn’t sure whether she could continue to work with her partner if they tried to be more and only ended up breaking each other’s hearts.

How can she justify taking that chance? What would she achieve by attempting a relationship with Yang? It won’t help them save lives or stop Salem. The only thing it would accomplish is to make her happy. Maybe it’s for the best that Harriet’s warning came before things went too far. After all, it’s difficult to miss what you’ve never had. At least, that’s what she tells herself.

It doesn’t make it hurt any less, though, and her shoulders start to shake as tears stain her pillow.

* * *

Yang can’t sleep. Too many thoughts are swirling round in her head, and she sits up to turn on the light, hoping that focussing on something else for a few minutes will clear her thoughts. She grabs her Scroll from the bedside table and opens her photo gallery, scrolling through the pictures she took during the party to see which ones she wants to keep. There’s one of Penny doing some kind of interesting movement that she assumes is meant to be a dance, another of Weiss scowling at Nora after Nora accidentally dropped some cake down Weiss’ front, and there’s—

_Oh._

When she sought out Blake for a selfie, she must have started pressing the shutter a little sooner than she’d thought, because before the numerous versions where they both have awkward smiles on their faces, there’s one which must have been taken before Blake realised that Yang wanted a picture. Her partner appears totally happy and comfortable, and Yang’s heart warms at the sheer volume of affection with which Blake is looking at her.

Harriet’s warning replays in the back of her mind, and she feels her face fall. Whatever is blooming between her and Blake is one of the best things in her life—one of the few things she’s come to truly rely on—and she can’t believe that it would be wrong to indulge it. It feels so right—has brought so much joy to her life—and she can’t reconcile those feelings with Harriet’s calm and dismissive tone.

But what if she _is_ right? What if she gets too clingy and screws things up? Or if she pushes for something that Blake isn’t ready to give without even realising it? She’d rather lose her other arm than hurt her partner, and the idea of ruining the connection they’ve only just begun to rebuild leaves her cold. She can’t lose yet another person just as she’s come to see them as permanent— to believe that they’ll stay. She _can’t._

A knock on the door cuts through the dejection settling over her, and she puts her Scroll back down before heading to see who it is. She wonders if something’s happened, because why else would anyone be coming to her room in the middle of the night? She turns the handle, swinging open the door, and she swallows hard because the person standing in the corridor outside is Blake.

Her partner’s hair is messy, her eyes are bright with something intense—almost wild—and before Yang can even think to say a word, Blake’s hands are cupping her face and she’s being pulled down into a desperate kiss. She’s frozen for a moment as her brain shortcircuits, and then she wraps her arms around her partner’s waist, slowly kissing her back.

It’s perfect—everything else fades away as _Blake_ takes over her every sense—but she can taste salt, and she wonders if Blake’s been crying. Slowly she eases back, feeling Blake’s breath fast and warm against her lips, sending a shiver down her spine. “Baby, I’m not complaining.” She laughs lightly. “I’m _really_ not complaining. But are you okay?”

“I wasn’t,” Blake says, voice just a little shaky. “But I am now. I was— I was thinking. About—”

“—what Harriet said?” Yang completes the sentence, and Blake’s nod tells her she chose the correct answer. “Yeah, me too.”

There’s a long beat of silence, and then Blake breaks it. “To begin with I was so sure that she was right. I couldn’t stop thinking of all the things that could go wrong if we do this, but— but you make me happy. The happiest I’ve ever been. And I— I hope that I do the same for you. So what if she thinks that these feelings are a weakness? Fuck that. Being in love with you has only made me stronger, and I’m _not_ giving it up. Not when we’re only just starting to figure it out.”

Yang stares speechlessly for several seconds, the ardent determination in her partner’s voice catching her completely off guard. She’s been hoping that Blake might harbour some feelings for her but this is— this is _so_ much more than she ever expected. She considers the gold that now adorns the blade of Gambol Shroud— Blake thinks that Yang makes her stronger. Blake is in love with her.

_Blake is in love with her._

Those same six words play over and over again in her head like a broken record, and she knows that she needs to respond but she doesn’t know what she can say that will be enough. “Blake,” she starts, her words thick with tears as a lump forms in her throat. “You _do_ do the same for me. Don’t _ever_ doubt that. I— I feel the same way. I don’t care what some fancy Atlesian operative who we barely know thinks. Our whole lives are taking risks— what’s the point in choosing to be miserable when we could die tomorrow anyway? My love for you is a _good_ thing, and if— _when_ we make mistakes we’ll deal with them together.”

Blake kisses her again, and it feels like an affirmation— or a promise. Yang said that things have changed between them earlier, but in this moment it feels like they’ve finally moved beyond the nebulous uncertainty that was keeping them trapped before. Like they were trying to tread water and now they’ve found solid ground. They’ve made their choice, and it’ll be worth whatever challenges they have to overcome to make it work.

**Author's Note:**

> Damn Volume 7 is so good so far and they keep feeding us so well. Anyway any comments apart from non-constructive criticism are not just welcomed but hugely appreciated as always and I'll see y'all next time <3


End file.
